Jain World
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SIGNIFICANCE OF JAINISM |
5. INCULCATION OF SELF-RELIANCE
The contribution of Tirthankara Mahavira and Jaina Acharyas of a
revolutionary nature consisted in completely changing the attitude of the
people towards God and thereby inculcating the spirit of self� reliance
among the minds of the people. The common belief held by the people
according to the prevalent ideology was that as this world has been
created by God and that the work of controlling the events in this world
in also carried out by God. This popular belief engendered a feeling of
divine dispensation in the minds of the people because it was firmly held
by the people that God can do and undo anything in this world in
accordance with his wishes. Naturally this feeling created a sense of
complete dependence on God by the people in the conduct of their daily
activities and in securing happiness in this world as well as in the next
world. Obviously this sense of dependence on God urged people to find out
ways and means so as to obtain in abundant measure the favours of God in
mundane and spiritual matters and also to avoid the displeasure or wrath
of God which, it was thought, would not only bring several difficulties in
the normal course of life but also would lead to complete disaster. As a
result of this attitude, people began to place entirely blind faith on the
omnipotent God and to secure his favours by practising certain rites and
rituals laid down for the purposes. These prescribed rituals were so
elaborate that they did require the services of priests who were supposed
to have the special knowledge about these rites and who were also
specifically authorised to perform these rituals in a proper manner. In
this way the entire code of conduct of the people was fully dominated by
the practice of various rituals throughout the course of life and by the
priests whose help and assistance were considered most essential to work
as intermediary between people and God for securing desired favours from
God.
Tirthankara Mahavira and Jaina Acharyas launched an intensive attack on
this attitude of complete submission to God by the people for attaining
their final objective in life, viz. liberation. 1n this regard Tirthankara
Mahavira firmly asserted that this world is eternal and has not been
created by any power like God and that the happenings in this world are
not controlled by God. He clearly proclaimed that nothing here or
elsewhere depends on the favours of God but everything depends on the
actions of the people. He confidently stated that all persons,
irrespective of their class, family or position, have got a right to
achieve salvation, their ultimate objective in life, by relying on
themselves and through the observance of an ethical code of conduct and
not by merely performing some rituals with the help of others. For this
purpose he laid down a path to liberation which consisted of right faith,
right knowledge and right conduct and appealed to the people to follow
this path on their individual initiative and efforts and not with the help
of any intermediary.
Further, he impressed on the people the theory of karma which is based on
the principle of self-reliance. This doctrine explains the reasons lying
behind or causes leading to effects. It maintains that every happening in
this world is the result of some antecedent causes. Since the individual
soul is the doer of actions, it must bear the consequences of these
actions sooner or later. There is no way out of it. The responsibility of
consequences cannot be shifted nor exemption from the consequences be
given by anybody. The soul has to enjoy the fruits of the karmas in this
life or in subsequent lives. There is no salvation until the soul stops
the influx of karmas and gets rid of existing karmas and this it will have
to do by its own deliberate efforts without expecting any help from an
outside agency like God. There is no use in asking the favour of God or
his representative because they do not have the power of determining the
consequence of the karmas and have no authority to forgive people from
future consequences of past actions.
This theory of karmas has been an original and integral part of the Jaina
ideology, and Tirthankara Mahavira convinced the people of the necessity
of adopting this doctrine and of moulding their entire life on the
foundation of this theory. Naturally Tirthankara Mahavira laid full stress
on individual action and completely denied the existence of divine
dispensation. He emphasized that man is the architect of his destiny and
that there is no external power which can come in the way of getting the
fruits of one�s actions, whether good or bad. He assured the people that
the attainment of liberation, the ultimate objective in life, is within
their reach and it depends entirely on one�s own efforts in the march on
the path to liberation. In this way Tirthankara Mahavira wanted every
individual to become a true hero on the battlefield of self-conquest. Thus
Tirthankara Mahavira inculcated a spirit of reliance among the people in
place of the feelings of utter dependence on God. This basic change in
attitude brought an over-all change in the course of life of the people
who began to lay stress more on the ethical aspects than on the
ritualistic aspects of their conduct.
6. EMPHASIS ON NON-VIOLENCE
The most distinctive contribution of Tirthankara Mahavira and Jaina
acharyas consists in their great emphasis on the observance of ahimsa,
i.e. non-injury to living beings, by all persons to the maxi�mum extent
possible. Ahimsa in its full significance was realised and preached by
twenty-three Tirthankaras preceding_ Tirthankara Mahavira. In fact, the
philosophy and rules of conduct laid down in Jaina religion have been
based on the solid foundation of ahimsa which has throughout and
consistently, been followed to its logical conclusion. That is why Jainism
has become synonymous with ahimsa and Jaina religion is considered as the
religion of ahimsa. The significance of this basic principle of ahimsa was
very powerfully reiterated by Tirthankara Mahavira as the practices of
committing violence on different pretexts had become rampant at that time.
During the later Vedic period utmost importance was attached to the
performance of sacrifices with a view to secure the favours of God and to
avert His anger. The sacrifices were very elaborate, complicated and
hedged with various restrictions. The sacrifices became a regular feature
of the religious life of the people. The peculiar characteristic of these
sacrifices was that they were usually accompanied by the slaughter of
animals. As the sacrifices were mainly animal sacrifices they involved the
practice of himsa to a considerable extent. Along with this practice, the
flesh-eating or non-vegetarian diet was ex�tremely popular among the
different sections of the peoplea. The people in those days were fond of
meat-eating and practically all the important ceremonies were attended
with the slaughter of animals. Offerings of flesh were frequently made to
the Gods by worshippers.
Tirthankara Mahavira and Jaina Acharyas launched a vigorous attack against
meat-eating and the performance of sacrificial rites by propagating the
principle of ahimsa, i.e. non-injury to living beings. In fact in all his
preaching Tirthankara Mahavira invariably laid great stress on the
observance of ahimsa because the principle of ahinisd is -the logical
outcome of the basic Jaina metaphysical theory that all the souls are
potentially equal. He therefore asserted that as no one likes pain, one
should not do unto others what one does not want others to do unto
oneself: Since all living beings possessed a soul the principle of
non-injury was obviously extended to cover all living beings. He explained
the doctrine of ahirrisa systematically and to the minutest detail. He
considered injury or violence of three kinds: (i) physical violence, which
covered killing, wounding and causing any physical pain, (ii) violence in
words consisted in using harsh words, and (iii) mental violence, which
implied bearing ill-feeling towards others. Further, he made it clear that
violence or injury should be avoided in three ways, that is, it should not
be committed, commissioned or consented to. Moreover, among the five main
vrata.r, i.e. vows, the first place was given to the observance of ahimsa
. In addition, ahimsa was regarded as the principal vow, and the other
four vows were considered to be merely details of the principal vow.
All these preachings of Jaina religion regarding the strict observance of
the principle of ahimsa to the maximum extent possible by every individual
in society produced far-reaching effects in social fields. The practice
performing sacrificial rites and especially the slaughter of animals at
the time of sacrifices considerably fell into disuse. Similarly killing of
animals for hunting, sports and decoration purposes was greatly reduced.
Further, the slaughter of animals and birds with a view to use their flesh
as a form of diet slowly became unpopular. In this way injury to living
beings was greatly reduced and �the practice of vegetarian diet was
adopted by large sections of population in different regions of the
country. In this connection Dr. N.K. Dutt (in his book Origin and Growth
of Caste in India) observes that �Animal sacrifice had been of so long
standing among the Aryans and such was the respect for the authority of
the Vedas which made it obligatory to sacrifice with flesh offerings, that
the abolition of sacrifices, even of cows, became a very slow process
effecting only a very small minority, the intellectual section of the
people; and might not have succeeded at all, if Jainism and Buddhism had
not over�whelmed the country and the mass of the people with the teachings
of ahimsa and inefficacy of sacrificial rites.�
Thus Tirthankara Mahavira emphasised the basic fact that every living
being has a sanctity and a dignity of its own and therefore one must
respect it as one expects one�s own dignity to be respected by others: He
also firmly emphasised that life is sacred irrespective of species, caste,
colour, creed or nationality. On this basis he advocated the principle of
`Live and let live�: In this way Tirthankara Mahavira convinced the people
that the practice of ahimsa is both an individual and a collective virtue
and showed that ahimsa has a positive force and a universal appeal.
7. INSISTENCE ON TOLERANCE
Advocacy of the principle of religious tolerance has been the
characteristic contribution of Tirthankara Mahavira and the Jaina Acharyas.
When Tirthankara Mahavira promulgated Jaina religion, he never deprecated
other religions and never tried to prove that other religions are false.
In fact he propounded the doctrine of Anekantavada, i.e., many-sidedness,
and showed that a thing can be considered from many points of view. That
is why he always advised the people to find out the truth in anything
after taking into account several sides or aspects of that thing. This
obviously broadens the outlook of the persons as they are made to look at
a thing from different angles. At the same time the principle of
Anekantavada does not engender the feelings of enmity or hatred towards
the other religionists because it believes that other religions also would
be having some truth from their points of view. Hence by enunciating the
principle of Anekantavada, Ti.�rtharikara Mahavira and the Jaina acharyas
advocated the principle of tolerance and asserted that it could be applied
to intellectual, social, religious and other fields of activities. As a
result we find that Anekantavitda has definitely a bearing on man�s
psychological and spiritual life and that it is not confined to solve a
mere ontological problem. It has supplied the philosopher-with catholicity
of thought, convincing him that truth is not anybody�s monopoly with
tariff walls of denominational religion. It also furnished the religious
aspirant with the virtue of intellectual toleration which is a part of
ahimsa
Human beings have limited knowledge and inadequate expression. That is why
different doctrines are inadequate, at the most they are one-sided views
of Truth which cannot be duly enclosed in words and concepts. Jainism has
always held that it is wrong, if not dangerous, to presume that one�s own
creed alone represents the truth. Toleration is, therefore, the
characteristic of Jaina ideology as propounded by Tirthankara Mahavira.
Even the Jaina monarchs and generals have a clean and commendable record
to their credit in this regard. The political history of India knows no
cases of persecution by Jaina kings, even when Jaina monks and laymen have
suffered at the hands of other religionists of fanatical temper. Dr.
B.A.Saletore has rightly observed in this regard that �The principle of
ahimsa was partly responsible for the greatest contribution of the Jainas
to Hindu culture-that relating to toleration. Whatever may he said
concerning the rigidity with which they maintained their religious tenets
and the tenacity and skill with which they met and defeated their
opponents in religious disputations, yet it cannot be denied that the
Jainas fostered the principle of toleration more sincerely and at the same
time more successfully than any other community in India�.
8. ENCOURAGEMENT TO SOCIAL WELFARE
Along with the maximum emphasis on the actual observance of ahimsa
Tirthankara Mahavira and the Jaina acharyas greatly ex�tended the
implications of. They invariably stressed both the negative and the
positive aspects of ahimsa . They strongly advocated that the concept of
ahimsa should not be confined only to the negative side of it, that is,
the avoidance of injury to the living beings of different categories, but
should be consistently applied in the positive way, that is, in the
direction of increasing the welfare of all living beings. They always
appealed to the people to bear good intentions about the prosperity of
others, to show active interest in the welfare of the needy persons, and
to take practical steps to ameliorate the miserable conditions of
afflicted living beings including insects, birds, animals and men. This
positive encouragement to social welfare activities has been the most
useful and noteworthy contribution of Jainism to Indian Culture:
This humanitarian approach to lessen the miseries of living beings was
included in the vrata, i.e. vow, of aparigraha, i.e. abstention from greed
of worldly possessions. The vow of aparigraha is the fifth of the five
main vows which must be consistently followed by all persons. Aparigraha
involves avoiding the fault of parigraha which consists in desiring more
than what is needed by an individual. Accumulating even necessary articles
in large numbers, expressing wonder at the prosperity of others, excessive
greed and changing the proportions of existing possessions are all forms
of parigraha i.e. worldly attach�ments. This vow aims at putting a limit
on the worldly possessions by individuals according to their needs and
desires. That is why this vow of aparigraha is many times termed as
parigraha parimana-vrata, i.e. the vow to limit one�s worldly possessions.
This vow of parigraha parimana is very noteworthy as it indirectly aims at
economic equalization by peacefully preventing undue accu�mulation of
capital in individual hands. It recommends that a householder should fix,
beforehand, the limit of his maximum be�longings, and should, in no case,
exceed it. If he ever happens to earn more than that he must spend it away
in dana, i.e. charities. The best forms of charities prescribed by
religion are ahara-abhaya-bhaisajya�sastra-dana, i.e. giving food to the
hungry and the poor, saving the lives of people in danger, distribution of
medicines and spreading knowledge. These charities are called the
chaturvidha-dana i.e. the fourfold gifts, by Jaina religion and it has
been enjoined on the householders that they should make special efforts to
give these charities to the needy irrespective of caste or creed.
From the beginning the Jaina householders made it one of their cardinal
principles to give these four gifts to all persons who are in need of such
help. In fact this help was extended to the protection and well-being of
insects, birds and animals also. For this the Jainas established alm-houses,
rest-houses, dispensaries and educational insti�tutions wherever they were
concentrated in good numbers. The anna�chhatralayas, i.e. alm-houses, were
conducted at pilgrim and other centres for the benefit of poor people. In
the dharma-s�alas, i.e. rest�houses, lodging arrangements were provided
without any charges or at nominal charges at important towns, cities and
pilgrim places. The ausadhalayas, i.e. dispensaries, provided free
medicines to the afflicted persons. Along with the dispensaries for men,
the Jainas conducted special institutions known as Pinjarapolas for the
protection and care of helpless and decrepit animals and birds. In unusual
times of flood and famine these pinjarapolas carry out various activities
for animal protection. There is hardly any town or village of Gujarat or
Rajasthan, where a pinjarapola is not present in some form or other. the
spread of education the Jainas took a leading part in the education of the
masses. Various relics show that formerly Jaina ascetics took a great
share in teaching children in the southern countries, viz, Andhra,
Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra. In this connection Dr. A.S. Altekar
rightly observes (in his book Rastrakutas and Their Times) that before the
beginning of the alphabet proper the children should be required to pay
homage to the deity Ganesha, by reciting the formula SSri Gaitesaya namah,
it is natural in Hindu society, but that in the Deccan even today it
should be followed by the Jaina formula `Om namah siddham�, it shows that
the Jaina leaders of medieval age had so completely controlled the mass
education that the Hindus continued to teach their children this
originally Jaina formula even after the decline of Jainism. Even now the
Jainas have rigorously maintained the tradition by giving freely these
Chaturvidha-danas, i.e. four types of gifts, in all parts of India. In
this manner the legacy of IvSahavira has been continued to the present
day.
Thus there is an immense value attached to this vow of aparigraha or
parigraha parimana from social point of view. At the same time this vow
has got a great significance in preparing a proper mental attitude towards
material possessions, in forming a true scale of values, and in developing
a right sense of proportion for individual possessions. This vow
emphasises that one should not feel too much attachment towards his own
possessions and should resist all tempta�tions. It teaches that one may
keep wealth and commodities to satisfy one�s requirements but one should
not lose oneself in the pursuit of material gain. In this manner it
appeals that one should rise above greed, vanity, lust, etc. Thus the vow
of aparigraha inculcates a particular mental attitude of self-restraint in
the face of pleasures, of stoicism before temptations and of detachment
from superfluities and super-abundances. This attitude of mind is perhaps
more necessary to-day than ever before.
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